Craft, who was suffering from two types of cancer, was then invited to see the film with his wife, despite it being unfinished.

The news of his death just days after the screening was announced on the Facebook page of the New York Asian Film Festival, of which he was a director.

“Last night around 10:15pm, Dan Craft, who has been a member of Subway Cinema since 2004, passed away,” read a statement.

“His wife and brother were with him when he went, and he wasn't in any pain. He'd been a bit loopy for a few days as his liver failed and toxins built up in his blood, and on Thursday his wife asked him if he needed to go to the bathroom. 'I'm going...' he proclaimed, 'into the future.' See you there, Dan.”

Craft's wife had expressed her gratitude to Abrams, who is notoriously secretive about his plots, after they attended the screening.

“It was a wonderful thing to see with Daniel and a wonderful thing to see Daniel enjoy - making someone as ill as he is smile for any length of time really makes a difference. (At this point making me smile is good too),” she wrote in a letter published on Reddit.

“This is also so poignant as JJ Abrams took so much care in the first Star Trek movie to at least TRY to get everything 'right' for the fans and we were so touched when he was concerned that we wouldn't 100% enjoy the screening as it's still being worked on....... Be assured we enjoyed it 110%! We are so grateful thank you, thank you, thank you....”.